Philadelphia Officer Killed, Another Wounded In Wild Shootout

PHILADELPHIA - September 24, 2008 - (WPVI) -- At a Wednesday afternoon news conference, Philadelphia police released more information about the shooting death of Officer Patrick McDonald, 30, and the wounding of Officer Richard Bowes, 35.
The shooting happened Tuesday afternoon in North Philadelphia. At the news conference, Capt. James Clark told reporters that Officer McDonald had stopped the gunman, 27-year-old Daniel Giddings because a tail light was out on the car he was riding in.
Police say Officer McDonald approached the vehicle, and took the information from the female driver and Giddings. Giddings gave McDonald a false name.
Investigators say McDonald soon realized the lie Giddings had told him, and approached the passenger side of the car. Giddings jumped out of the car through the driver's side door and ran off on foot, with McDonald giving chase.
In the 2200 block of Colorado, McDonald caught up with Giddings. Police say Giddings then shot McDonald with a .45 semi-automatic handgun. Then Giddings stood over McDonald, and fired several more times, executing him.
Police say Giddings then stole a bicycle from a person who was in the area, and started to ride away. That's when he encountered three highway patrol officers on motorcycles. Investigators say Giddings threw his bicycle at one officer, knocking him off his motorcycle. Another officer tended to McDonald, while the third officer, Richard Bowes, chased Giddings.
Police say Gidding shot Officer Bowes in the hip, and even though he'd been shot, Police Chief Charles Ramsey says Bowes was able to fire six shots, striking and killing Giddings.
Police recovered the weapon at the scene and say Giddings had fired all rounds from the weapon.
Authorities say they've determined that the weapon, and several others, were purchased by a man named Jason Mack of South Carolina back in 2006. The ATF is now questioning Mack.
The woman who was in the car with Giddings was questioned by police. She will not be charged.
As for Giddings, police released more details about his criminal history.
According to police, Giddings was arrested back in August of 1998 for a carjacking, in which he shot the victim twice in the legs and stole $100. Giddings was sentenced to 6-12 years behind bars.
While in prison, police say Giddings was accused of 27 infractions, and found guilty on 18 of those. In addition, police say Giddings was kicked out of two prisons during his sentence.
Giddings was paroled on August 18, 2008. He spent a week at a halfway house at 12th and Bainbridge before disappearing.
Shortly after, police attempted to pull him over for a traffic violation, and he ran off. Officers caught up to Giddings and a fight ensued. Giddings escaped, and four officers were hurt. An arrest warrant was issued after that incident.
During that incident, according to police, Giddings told friends he "would not be taken alive." "Our understanding was, after he assaulted the officers, he made a statement that he would not go back to prison, and he would take down any officer that tried to take him to prison," said Capt. James Clark.
"He was a dangerous individual, and he demonstrated that over and over and over again," said Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey.
During one of his public appearances Wednesday, Mayor Michael Nutter was overcome as he asked the community to show their support for the embattled police department. "If you see a police officer today, please take a moment to..." Mayor Nutter then paused to collect himself. "Just take a moment." On Wednesday, District Attorney Lynne Abraham said that Officer Bowes' use of deadly force was justified.

The following editorial in the DELCO TIMES certainly is unusual to see in today's media. It is refreashing to see that now some media are actually calling things the way we see it:

Another Philadelphia police officer has been killed in the line of duty.
His name was Patrick McDonald. He was 30 years old.
He was killed by a felon named Daniel Giddings, who had just gotten out of prison despite not exactly being on his best behavior there. Published reports have Giddings, 27, committing more than 20 separate prison violations during his 10 years behind bars. He was released from prison before serving his maximum sentence anyway.
Giddings was arrested in 1998, after a carjacking in which he shot his victim in the legs and took the car. Nevertheless, the carjacking and weapons offenses were dismissed.
The idea, obviously, was to move the case more quickly through the system and give a young man a break. Giddings was only 17 at the time of his arrest. But his crimes were serious enough to warrant serious time and he got it - six to 12 years.
Almost immediately after a decade in jail, Giddings was running with bad company again. When police tried to stop a car for a routine traffic violation, the driver took off. Giddings jumped from the car and wrestled with police before escaping. The car, the cops found out later, was stolen. A warrant was put out for Giddings' arrest.
A few days later, it was McDonald's bad fortune to pull over a car in which Giddings was riding.
Giddings jumped from the vehicle and fled, but this time he pulled a .45 automatic and fired at his pursuer. He hit McDonald in the chest. When the officer went down, police described what they called "an execution," as Giddings stopped, stood over the fallen cop and fired a few more shots into him.
When more police closed in, Giddings again fired his weapon in their direction. After fire was returned, Giddings was dead.
Wednesday Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter talked about the loss of Patrick McDonald. He referred to his killer as "sub-human."
When a caller asked about the failure of the prison system to rehabilitate Giddings, Nutter wasn't buying. He said that what Giddings did was "on him."
There are, the mayor said, plenty of opportunities, both in prison and out, for inmates and ex-cons to utilize to turn their lives around. But they have to take the initiative. There are plenty of learning programs and other offerings for those interested while paying their debt to society. That many convicts choose instead to pump iron and join gangs is their choice.
Officer McDonald is the fourth Philadelphia police officer to be killed in the line of duty in the last year. His death raises this question: If the police aren't safe from the increasingly brazen and violent outlaw class, how can they protect the rest of the citizens of the city?
The answer is they can't.
This week, Philadelphia police managed to rid their city of one of its more violent criminals. It cost them one of their own to do it. A lousy trade-off.
But at least Giddings won't ever again bother, or be a risk to, the citizens of Philadelphia.
Or its cops.

©DelcoTimes 2008

Here's a letter to the editor of THE PHILADELPHIA DAILY NEWS which appears to be from a fellow officer:

FOR THE fourth time in 10 months, another one of my brothers and sisters in blue has been taken away from us at the hands of some maniacal deviant who had been allowed to skate through the judicial portion of our so-called criminal-justice system. As law-enforcement officers, we are held accountable for every thing that we do, from issuing a traffic ticket to arresting someone for murder.
But who is going to hold the judges accountable for allowing these "monsters" back on the street?
The monster who shot Sgt. Liczbinski had an extensive record, the monster who killed Officer Nazario was well on his way to a life of gangsterdom, the monster who shot and killed Officer Pat McDonald had a history of violence.
I ask, Philadelphia, when does it stop?
As police officers, Internal Affairs monitors our behavior to ensure we are operating within the letter of the law. Who is monitoring the judges?
There are statistics accumulated on every arrest, every vehicle and pedestrian investigation, every accusation of brutality.
Who is collecting and monitoring the stats on how many defendants are given a slap on the wrist when we all know they should be serving hard time breaking rocks and making license plates? What agency monitors a judge's conviction rate and sentencing lapses? After 15 years of battling on these mean streets and seeing far too many of my brothers and sisters in blue fall at the hands of these menaces, it's time for the citizens of Philadelphia to get fed up. The average citizen must ponder the thought that "My God, if they'll kill a cop, what would they do to little ol' me?"
But had Officer McDonald gotten the upper hand on Mr. Giddings, there would have been an uproar throughout North Philadelphia. There would be makeshift memorials to celebrate and commemorate the life of an animal.
Have we become so desensitized that the life of a piece of garbage is worth more than the lives of the 6,800 men and women of the Philadelphia Police Department who go out there every day and selflessly protect individuals whom they will probably never know?
Philadelphia, we should be outraged that our streets are running red with the blood of the heroes who protect you and me. If you're not outraged, you should be. Hold these judges accountable for putting these animals back on the street to re-offend. Your loved one could be their next victim.
Godspeed, P/O Nazario, P/O McDonald, Sgt. Liczbinski, P/O Cassidy, P/O Skerski and all the other fallen officers in this city.
Jonathan D. Josey II, Philadelphia